This is a bold topic to tackle yet it must be done. It is bold because at the outset one must recognize that one doesn’t have the answers. It is bold because it reminds us that God is not us and we cannot comprehend Him fully. The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Trinity and He lives in those that have believed in the Lord Jesus as their saviour and Lord. The bible calls Him many names among which are comforter, revealer, helper, counselor, advocate, etc. Jesus before leaving this world told his disciples that it was far better for them that he leaves so that they could receive the Holy Spirit (John 16:7). What was it about the Holy Spirit that made Jesus make such a statement? If the Holy Spirit is so beneficial for us during Jesus’ absence, then shouldn’t we be more concerned about seeking the Holy Spirit in our lives? Shouldn’t we want more of Him? Shouldn’t we desire to surrender to Him? It is very concerning that the most important being according to Jesus is also the most neglected one by his very disciples. I believe Francis Chan coined it well in the very title of his book “Forgotten God”. I do not claim to have any higher knowledge on the Holy Spirit in fact I myself am also seeking and learning but I can share four observations I have seen about Him in the Scriptures that deserve our attention.
First, the Holy Spirit is a Person, the bible is very clear about that. Whenever the Holy Spirit is mentioned He is personified; the uses of the personal pronoun “he” or “him” emphasizes that truth. For example, John says the following in John 14:17 “The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (italics mine). John is clearly speaking about the Holy Spirit as a person and not simply a spirit. I believe for many of us, this is the first truth we need to constantly be reminded of, not limiting the Holy Spirit simply to a spirit but remembering that He is a person with power, and a mind – the very mind of God.
Second, the Holy Spirit enacts the will of God. The very first act of the Holy Spirit that we know of is his hovering over the waters (Genesis 1:1). He goes to places to bring about the mind of God, the will and ways of God into life. Only when the Holy Spirit appears do we see light being brought in. One of the roles of the Holy Spirit is to convict God’s people of their wrongdoings, He is there to steer God’s children away from wickedness and sin and that is how He brings light into darkness. When we believe in the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, we receive the Holy Spirit. We now have God himself living in us, our bodies are now the temple of the Holy Spirit as Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 6:19. One of the first implications of that truth is that we are no longer our own, which means we have to submit to the promptings and guidance of the Holy Spirit. We are to surrender to His ways and not ours; we have to accept to die to ourselves and live by the Spirit. For example, we have to say yes to love when we are wronged, to be calm when we are faced with situations not under our control; we have to be willing to decrease so that Christ would increase in us. I have been very humbled to see that the Holy Spirit is a very withdrawn being, always doing things in the background yet very powerful and very important. The Father and Jesus are often put forward yet it is the Holy Spirit that acts. What a humbling position!
Third, the Holy Spirit is the revealer, he reveals the hidden secrets of God. It is because of the Holy Spirit that we are able to understand what Jesus did on the cross; it is because of the Holy Spirit that we can study the Scriptures and understand its meaning. The Holy Spirit revealed the mystery of the gospel to us. Were it not for Him, we would not have known that God’s mind for salvation was for all to be saved, including the Gentiles. God’s plan of salvation was hidden for centuries, yet when the Holy Spirit came clarity was given. The early disciples marvelled at that discovery; that God would also decide to include the Pagans, the Gentiles into His family as His people as many exclaimed “So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life” (Acts 11:18).
Fourth, the Holy Spirit gives instructions. The more you embrace Him, the more clarity you get concerning the mind of God. In the book of Acts, we see that the Holy Spirit gave directions to the Apostles, He gave them instructions on where to go next, what city to enter and what not to enter. He also gave them instructions on who to go preach to (think of Peter’s vision and being led to speak to Cornelius in Acts 10), or who to appoint (think of the appointment of deacons in Acts 6 or the instance when the Holy Spirit asked that Paul and Barnabas be set aside for His work in Acts 13). I am convinced that just as Jesus never wondered what to do next or where to go, the same was true of the Apostles because they were led by the Holy Spirit. They did not do things on their own accord, they really learned to surrender.
I will be the first to admit that the Person of the Holy Spirit is not one that is straightforward like Jesus or the Father yet this does not mean I should put him aside. Doing so would be a disservice to God and would go in contradiction with what the Father wants. Jesus died on the cross so that I would receive the Holy Spirit; by dying on the cross he ensured that my relationship with the Father was restored just like in the beginning. Now I am as close to God as Adam was in the Garden of Eden all this because the Holy Spirit lives in me. I am praying to constantly remember that and to let that relationship transform my life. Amen.
A Word Aptly Spoken 